How Liam's Bravery Helped Him Fight Cancer

Liam had his 5 year well check last May 2018.  Everything looked normal aside from all the bruises he got on his legs and arms.  The doctor noticed that he was pale, so she ordered a blood draw.  After some time, the doctor came back and told them that Liam’s blood levels seemed off.  At that point, based on the numbers, his parents started to make assumptions on what was going on with their son.

Further tests were performed, and their suspicions were confirmed.  Liam has Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.  It is a type of blood cancer that is least common in adults.  It progresses quickly and without treatment, it can be fatal within a few months.

Liam started his chemotherapy and from what doctors are seeing, he has a good chance of fighting this.The little boy doesn’t even look sick.  He even handled his first chemo very well.  At this early stage, Liam looked fine as if nothing’s going on.  But his parents were still stunned about their little boy’s diagnosis.

Liam’s treatment plan includes chemotherapy and medication to offset the symptoms and side effects. They also did a few pre-meds before chemo to lessen pain, manage nausea and to avoid allergic reaction if needed.  Due to his low hemoglobin, he also got blood transfusions and steroid shots to help him improve his appetite. 

All the treatments went well so far for the little boy.  But none of it was easy for him.  He’s not throwing up, but his tummy hurts all day long.  He doesn’t have energy for anything.  His taste buds also changed.  Most of the time, his behavior is very unpredictable too.

Finally, after sessions of chemotherapy, Liam’s Leukemia was finally in remission.  Unfortunately, T-cell ALL has a high rate of relapse, and the treatment plan that he is on will hopefully help him avoid that.  It’s very critical to the point that even a single cell hiding in his bone marrow could cause other cells to mutate and be a breeding ground to Leukemia. 

Being in and out of the hospital is the family’s normal life right now.  Liam’s immune system was not consistent.  He still needs to have blood transfusions whenever his platelets go down.  He's continuing to lose his hair as well.  His energy wasn’t steady too.  Through all of this, the family have learned to evolved from a state of devastation to a state of acceptance.  This is their life now, and they want to make the best out of it and do what needs to be done. 

As of now, Liam is still doing chemotherapy and other treatment plans to suppress the cancer.  The effects of all the medication might not be good to his overall health but this is the best for his journey right now.  

This brave boy is such full of courage.

Meanwhile, achieving remission was a great news for the family.  But the thought of Liam will be going through chemotherapy treatment for THREE AND A HALF YEARS was hard not just for Liam but for the whole family too.  It is going to be a long journey for them.  And with all of these, the family was just beyond grateful to everyone who’s helping to support Liam’s treatment plans.   

Funds raised through our Childhood Cancer Campaign  have helped to raise needed funds to help with new medical  breakthroughs that were critical to helping Liam and other young  patients.